belknap



No. 609,402. Patented Aug. 23, I898.

F. D. BELKNAP. I

STENCIL PRINTING MACHINE.

(Application filed Aug. 14, 1897,)

(No Modal.) 2 Sheets-Sheet I.

I II 4 0 21IlwfmfIII I "III 6? III" r. n. BELKNAP. STENCIL PRINTING MACHINE.

(Application filed Aug. 14, 18.97.) Model 2 Sheets-Sheet 2.-

No. 609,402. Patented Aug. 23, I898.

I... 22 m 24 2l- E 3 30 14L 6 g 8" m 10 38 an O I 5 38 'I I I n n l I WITNESSES:

PATENT FRANK D. BELKNAP, OF NEW YORK, N. Y.

STENCIL-PRINTING MACHINE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 609,402, dated August 23, 1898.

Application filed August 14, 1897. Serial No. 648,194.. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, FRANK D. BELKNAP, a citizen of the United States, residing in the city, county, and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Stencil-Printing Machines, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to that class of apparatus in which a series of stencils bearing names and addresses are employed to print said names and addresses on a series of envelops, cards, or wrappers; and it consists more particularly of an improvement on the machine described and claimed in my pending application for patent, filedNovember 7, 1896, Serial No. 611,349.

The preferred form of apparatus is illustrated in the accompanying two sheets of drawings, in which Figure 1 is a side view of my improved apparatus. Fig. 2 is a partial plan view of the same. Fig. 3 is a longitudinal section looking from the same side of the machine as in Fig. 1, but illustrating a modified form of card-receiver. Fig. 4 is a rear elevation of the machine, looking from the opposite side to that shown in Fig. 1.

Throughout the drawings like reference-figures refer to like parts. I w

The special purpose of the apparatus herein illustrated is the rapid and convenient print ing of addresses from'th e stencil-cards with out the employment of the automatic feed, the articles,'usual1y wrappers, being fed by the operator by hand. To aooom'plish'this, I

employ the constantly-rotating ink-carrying 1 roller of my previously-mentioned applioa tion; but in order to facilitate the feeding of the articles to be addressed by handI employ a modification in which the upper ooacting roller is caused to recede or lift from the inkcarrying roller between each impression, so as to permit of the feeding in and removal of the wrapper or long envelop by hand.

lrepresents the main frame of the machine, in which is journaled the driving-shaft 2. This may be rotated by the handle 67 or by power, such as a little electric motor, trans mitted through the gear-wheel 3, when the clutch is thrown into action by the lever 66. 4: is a sprocket-wheel on the main shaft, over which runs the sprocket-chain 5 to a simiis the columnof stencil-cards 21.

"grooved guides 30 at each reciprocation.

mainder of its circumference, the surface dimensions of the full-faced portion being less than those of the stencil-cards designed for use with the machine.

Ink is supplied to the roller 15 by means of the roller 55, which is geared to rotate with the roller 15 by the toothed gearing shown in Fig. 3. The ink is supplied to roller 55 by the fountain-roller 17, rotating in the inkfountain 18 by means of the toothed gearing shown in Fig. 3.

The upper and coacting roller M is mounted on a shaft 13, and motion istransmitted to it from the main shaft 2 by means of the gear 56, meshing with the gear 57, which rotates on a stud-shaft and carries a sprocket-wheel, over which runs the sprocket-chain 58, which drives the sprocket-wheel 59 on said shaft 13. The gearing is so proportioned that the rollers 15 and 14; revolve at the same circumferential speed.

22 is a magazine of stencil-cards, in which The bottom 'of this column" rests on the slide 23, having the projection l l on its upper face,which catches the inner edge of the frame of the lower stencil-card and forces it out along thlg reciprocating motion is given to said slide by the link 25, crank 26, crank-shaft 26, bellcrank 27, eccentric-rod 28, and eccentric 29 on the main driving-shaft 2. This card-feeding mechanism is the same as that described in my before-mentioned pending application, the distance between the guides being greater than the width of the full-faced portion of the rollers 14 and 15, so that the same may come in contact with the card carried by the guides ICG mechanism for alternately bringing the coacting roller 14 into and out of contact with the ink-carrying roller is employed for the purpose of facilitating such hand-feeding. The shaft 13 is journaled in the swinging frame 60, mounted on the sleeve 61, which oscillates on the same stud-shaft as that on which the gear 57 rotates. The arm 62 projects from said sleeve and carries a roller which engages with the cam 63 on the sleeve 2 on the main shaft by reason of the fact that the spiral spring 64 tends always to lift the frame 60 and force said cam-roller down on the cam. After the card has been seized between the ink-carrying roller 15 and the coacting roller 14, together with the article to be addressed, said card is discharged by the continued rotation of said rollers, and in the arrangement illustrated in Fig. 1 drops into the receiving-box 36, while the longer envelop or wrapper passes over the guide'38 and drops into the box 37, all as described in said pending application. I preferto employ, however, the modified arrangement shown in Figs. 3 and 4, in which the card is given a downward turn by the downwardly-inclined guide 31, so that it turns over and falls on the reversed chute or guide 32, which delivers it to the box 36 face downward. The bottom of the cardreceiving box 36 is formed by sliding weight 36, which is supported by the cord 39, running over suitable pulleys 38 and 38 to the sliding weight 22, which is on top of the column of cards 21 in the magazine 22. It is evident that the weight 36 will fall at the same rate as does the weight 22 by reason of the using up of the cards in the magazine, and so the receiving-box 36 will always maintain the column of cards in it at the level shown, Where the succeeding cards will slide as follows: Rotation being given to the main 5 shaft by hand or. by power, a line of cards .31 at the end of the guide 30.

is fed along the guides 30, in the manner described in my previous application, to the point of tangency of the rollers 14 and 15. As the full-faced portion of the roller 15 comes up the cam 63 swings the frame and the coacting roller 14 down to such point as will cause the two rollers to compress the stencilcard and the article to be addressed between them, thereby forcing ink through the stencil-card and marking the address stenciled thereon upon the envelop. The cam 63 passing the cam-roller, the spring 64 lifts the frame 60, and with it the roller 14, so that the next article to be addressed can be conveniently fed in by the operator. The quick motion of the inking and coacting rollers shoots the addressed envelop out into the box 37 and the stencil-card along the guides 30 until it strikes the downwardly-inclined guide This turns the card down and over, so that it falls on the reversed chute 32, the other side up. By this it is slid onto the top of the column of cards in the receiving-box 36. As each card is pulled out from the bottom of the column 21 in the magazine the sliding weight 22 drops a distance equal to the thickness of that card and by means of the connecting-cord 39 permits the sliding bottom 36 of the receivingbox to drop a corresponding distance, and thus the column of cards in the receiving-box is always kept level with the lower end of the chute 32.

If it is desired to use the automatic feed 40, the spring 64 is disconnected. The swinging frame 60 then remains in its lowermost position and the apparatus operates in the manner described in my prior application. 7

It is evident that various changes could be made in the details of construction of my apparatus as here illustrated without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention so long as the relative arrangement and operation of parts herein described are retained. Different kinds of cam mechanism and other well-known mechanical equivalents might be employed to give the frame 60 its oscillating motion. Other trains of mechanism for transmitting motion to the different elements of the combination might be employed. A different connection between the sliding bottom 36 and the sliding weight 22, which would still give them coincident motions, might easily be designed; but all these possible modifications would be within the limits of my invention.

The advantages of the apparatus described consist in the facility with which it may be combined with the apparatus more fully described in my prior application to serve as a hand-feed machine in running off short jobs or in addressing any special form of envelop or wrapper which is too unhandy to be employed with the automatic feed. If the upper roller is maintained rigid in its lower position, it is diffieultfor the operator to feed in the envelops by hand at the rapid rate at which the machine runs without risk of injury or the crumpling up of the envelops. When the roller is lifted between each impression, this operation can be performed with safety and certainty. The advantage of the card-receiving box and card-magazine construction lies in the fact that by turning the cards over as described the column of cards in the receiver 36 can be removed in a body with the weight 36, and when used again can be put in the magazine 22, when the weight 36 takes the place of and exercises the functions of the weight 22*. This obviates the necessity of any handling of the individual cards.

Having therefore described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to protect by Letters Patent, is-

1. In a stencil-printing machine, the combination of the lower revolving ink-carrying faced portion along its entire breadth for the remainder of its circumference, the upper coacting roller which revolves at the same circumferential speed, means for feeding ink to the ink-carrying roller, and means for alternately bringing the upper coacting roller into contact with the full-faced portion of the inkcarrying roller during a portion of its revolution, and for lifting it away from said inkcarrying roller during the remainder of its rotation, substantially as described.

2. In a stencil-printing machine, the combination of the stencil-cards, a lower revolving, ink-carrying roller having its face cut away so as to have one or more portions Whose surface dimensions are less than those of the stencil-card, the upper coacting roller which revolves at the same circumferential speed as the ink-carrying roller, means for feeding ink to the ink-carrying roller, and means for alternately moving the upper eoacting roller toward and from. the. ink-carrying roller, substantially as described.

3. In a stencil-printing machine, the combination of the stencil-cards, a lower revolv- I ing, ink-carrying roller having its face cut away so as to have one or more portions whose surface dimensions are less than those of the stencil-card, the upper coacting roller means for alternately moving the upper coacting roller toward and from the ink-carrying roller, together with means for guiding the stencil-card to the point of tangency to the two rollers, substantially as described.

4:. In a stencil-printing machine, the com bination of the revolving ink-carrying roller, the coacting roller which revolves at the same circumferential speed,said coacting roller,be ing mounted in a swinging frame, a sprocketchain and connecting mechanism which conveys motion to the said roller from the main driving-gear,and a cam operated by said main driving-gear to move the swinging frame so that the said roller will alternately approach and recede from the ink-carrying roller, substantially as described.

In testimony whereof I have aflixed my signature in the presence of two witnesses.

FRANK D. BELKNAP.

Witnesses:

PETER R. GATEN, A. PARKER SMITH. 

